Posted On Friday, January 31, 2014

Some times it seems like, with all the many directions I'm being pulled on a regular basis, that I NEVER get anything done. And then there are times where things serendipitously fall into place so well that I'm able to knock out a number of things at once! This week happens to be one of those!

Just in time for Valentine's Day!

We're bringing back our 8bit Couples in new trading card sizes! Featuring 24 couples from comics and beyond, you can show some love to the geek(s) in your life!

From love to Lovecraft…!

I've been asked before to do a piece celebrating the Lovecraftian Elder-god, Cthulhu -- but you don't just jump off into something like that halfcocked! I'm glad I waited, this one was a little difficult, but I think I kinda nailed it! Patience is a virtue!

**BONUS** I did it on Horror-scribe, writing maestro and my good friend Dirk Manning's birthday, so it was a super-win for the world!

You can nab this Cthulhu design on a t-shirt EXCLUSIVELY thru our V:IPixels store on Skreened.com!

Posted On Thursday, January 30, 2014

Victor Dandridge’s eyes bulged like The Hulk’s transforming muscles when the breakfast plate named after the Marvel comic character arrived during our interview this week at SuperChef’s. The meal was huge and appropriately named (two green waffles sandwich an egg, cheese, sausage and candied bacon). Other meals at the Broad Street restaurant are likewise inspired by comics, which is one reason he loves the place (he ate there twice the first day). When he’s not at SuperChef’s, he’s usually creating his own comics, like “Kinderguardians,” which is “essentially the Muppet Babies meets the Justice League,” he said. The title will be available in April at most comic shops in Columbus. These are a few of his (other) favorite things.

VladTV interviews on YouTube

VladTV.com is a hip-hop news interview series. It’s kind of genius. It’s introduced me to a lot of different long-standing artists, and some of their ideas of music fascinate me. I was introduced to Charlamagne Tha God, a radio personality and one of the most prolific minds in terms of hip-hop culture in my opinion. It’s very interesting to hear his takes on things; he’s so brutally honest, I love it.

Big Fun in the Short North

I found this store over Christmas break, and it changed my life. It's the whole store of my childhood just sitting there — it’s dangerous. I only go in there when I absolutely don’t have anything else to do, because I could spend hours there; it’s ridiculously great. There's a picture of me laid out on the floor looking at something in the cases. My friend took a picture of it like a jerk, got me looking ridiculous spread out on the floor.

The work of Natasha Allegri

She did this thing called “Bee and PuppyCat.” It's this quirky little cartoon series that actually, I think, fits very perfectly within my wife's mind. If you were to catalog and dialogue the inner monologue of my wife, this is what it sounds like. It’s ridiculous. Everybody should take a second to check it out. Grownups will get a kick out of it. Kids will probably laugh, but the grownups will be like, “Whaa, that’s amazing!”

SuperChef’s The “Hulk”

I'm almost afraid to finish this [meal] because I know I have work to do and it’s going to put me to sleep. They put itis in their food — I tease them about that all the time. It's a different experience, which I really like as a comic book person, and I do love me some foods. I love the mix of those two things. It's amazing what they've done. It’s crazy good, and they have good music, too. How do you not like that?

They’re a very innovative source for new art and wearables. It's kind of a cool thing to see a mix of art and fashion on a local level. I've had plenty of conversations with them via Twitter, and it's really cool to have that accessibility to something so global. My store site is VIPixels; you can definitely see some of my pieces up there. I just put up some Valentine’s pieces. [Phone vibrates]And actually they just tweeted me just now, speak of the devil.

Posted On Tuesday, January 28, 2014

"Just Do It." The consummate motivational phrase, wrapped in a branding slogan, tucked in truth.

Since the age of 10, I've wanted to be a comic book artist -- to bust out amazingly epic tales, rendered in graphite imagery that captures imaginations much like the artists/writers/stories/books that inspired me. It has been my main creative pursuit for the last two decades -- even when I hit a creative wall with my own illustration abilities.

"I thought you were just a writer."

For the last few years, I've been predominantly known in a writer/publisher capacity only. A while back, I felt that my skills as an artist kinda went stagnant, far from the level that I wanted (and truly believed was necessary) to become a comic professional. So I kinda quit. I would draw things here and there, but certainly not to the fervor that my 10yr old self would've wanted and even further from what my 30yr old self should be comfortable doing. My self-criticisms were so strong that out of the many books I've had a hand in creating (a total of 12 titles), I've only seriously contributed art to 4 of them and maxing out at only 33pgs (out of over 300!).

What's the problem?

Coming into comics in the early 90's, my idea of "good/great" art was in the super-dynamic-hyper-crosshatching filled styles of Art Adams, Jim Lee and Rob Liefeld (that's right…Rob Liefeld). It colored my artistic reverence for YEARS, undermining the skill of earlier innovators like Frank Miller, Walt Simonson, John Byrne and yes…even Jack 'The King' Kirby. But I've matured since then, discovering what was so mind-boggling awesome about their work and how they paved the way for the high-kinetic art I was so enamored with.

But gaining that understanding did nothing for the sense of drawing style that I craved. In fact, it's somewhat fed into my stagnation -- where once I had a particularly influential style that I was adamantly trying to mimic, my art sensibilities were exploded open and I was susceptible to a whole range of comic arts. The influx made me a sponge, able to take in an appreciate what I saw, but not exactly capable of generating a satisfactory style of my own.

Gaining ground.

I've realized that I've created an unfair slant for myself. So keen on my understanding of what proper "comic art" should be, I've forgotten the beauty of simply making some comics. But ladies and gents, I HAVE SEEN THE LIGHT! I'm taking myself back to square one -- the truth is, I KNOW how to draw. I've shared my insights enough to help others draw better. What I need to do is be more comfortable with the way I draw. Stop trying to mold my art output to the stylings of someone else's voice, but to truly put stock in my own.

So, consider this a warning! Expect some random (seeming) comic booky goodness to be coming out of yours truly. I've got some stories that I'm itching to play with and I won't be waiting "till I grow up" any longer! Thanks for your time and listening to me ramble -- it's time to get back to the drawing board!

Posted On Sunday, January 26, 2014

Last year I had a thought: What if I'm going to be more known for my ideas, than my work? It was kind of a harrowing experience -- propositioning a preemptive discounting all the work I've done (or will ever do). But sucked up my fear and decided that if that was going to be my lot in this field, then I would do so with gusto and charm! And what better way to do that than with VIDEO!

Since catching a few of the Vlad TV interviews on YouTube a while ago, I've been intrigued by what sort of energy using video could bring to my musings through UnConventional. An informal convo about my personal views on comics and the industry could be plenty fun…so I did one! Let me know what you think!